Al Capone Trial
(1931)Excerpts from the Trial
Transcript: John Fotre (manager of Western Union branch)

Direct examination by Dwight Green:

Green:

I show you
Government's Exhibit 14A which purports to be a money transfer dated
July 2nd,
1928, addressed to Mr. Al Capone, Palm Island, Miami Beach, Florida,
the sum of
$1500, signed Sam Guzik, 301 East 24th Street, telephone Calumet 4100,
and ask
you if you have seen that before?
Fotre: Yes, sir, I have.

Green: Do you
know
who wrote, “Mr. Al Capone, PalmIsland"?
Fotre: I take it the sender wrote it.

Fink:
Who?

Green:
Who was the sender?

Fotre: Sam
Guzik.

Ahern:
I move to strike out “I take it,” unless he knows.

Green:
Do you know who sent that money transfer?

Fotre: No,
I do not.

Court:

Somebody
sent the money?
Fotre: Yes, sir.

Court: And
who
sent it?
Fotre: I don't know.

Court:
Well, did
the person whose name appears on there as sender send the money?
Fotre: Not
necessarily, Your Honor.

Court: Is
there
anything on that transfer to indicate where the money came from that
you
transmitted by wire? You did not send money that somebody did not give
you, did
you?

Fotre:
No, sir, Your Honor, I did not.

Court: What
you
mean when you say you do not know who the sender was? Is it that you
would not now
be able to identify the sender, is that it?
Fotre: Well, I could not say whether Sam
Guzik himself brought that in or not. That is what

I mean to
say.

Court: Is
there a
Sam Guzik? Do you know who he is?

Fotre: I do
not know; no, sir. I don't know him personally.

Court:
Somebody
brought it in and sent it in his name, is that it?
Fotre: [No answer].

Court:
The jury, may retire. We will take a recess until tomorrow morning. You
think this over.

[Counsel
for Capone later stipulated that the
transfers were sent when and where the Government contended.]